Iraq Media Action Project

Learn more about how the Iraq War is impacting children, veterans, social services, and ancient cultures. Get involved in current campaigns and find out about actions that you can take to help end the war.

Working Films advances social, economic, environment, and racial justice by linking independent non-fiction media to activism. Get involved in their Iraq Media Action Project (IMAP) campaign. Watch the documentaries, "A Letter to the Prime Minister," "Me and the Mosque," "The Peace Patriots," and "Seniors for Peace." Then empower yourself to make a difference. The following organizations and links are just a sample of the many different actions you can take to help end the war.

Bring Home the National Guard in Your State!

When the governor of Minnesota refused to allow National Guard members to be sent to Central America for a training mission in 1990, a Supreme Court decision set a precedent recognizing the authority of each Governor over the use of the National Guard for their state. In its ruling, the Supreme Court affirmed the right of the federal government to call up National Guard troops - but it also said that governors could refuse a federal request if a deployment would impair its ability to serve or train for emergencies at home.

In the aftermath of Katrina and with over 70,000 National Guard troops deployed to Iraq, many states are making the argument that the use of the Guard in Iraq is leaving us vulnerable on the homefront. At least twelve different states have initiatives in progress to petition their Governor to bring home our Guard!

Join CODEPINK's Bring Our Guard Home Now! Campaign

Use a screening of an IMAP film to launch a local Bring Our Guard Home Now! action. All of the IMAP films listed above clearly demonstrate the disastrous affects of the war. Use a screening to inspire others in your community to get on board to pass a local resolution asking your governor to recall the national guard or jumpstart your group’s participation in an existing statewide campaign to Bring Back our Guard.

Push the Governor of your state to call on the President for the immediate withdrawal of all National Guard troops from Iraq. Together pressure from each of these Governor’s may be sufficient force president Bush to withdraw our troops from Iraq.

Join the effort! Check out the links below to get involved with a campaign already happening in your community or find out how you can start a working group in your state.

Find Out What’s Happening Across the Country

Start Organizing a Bring our Guard Home Now! Campaign in Your state

Connect the war in Iraq and the war on social services at home
Find out how much your town or city has spent on the war in Iraq by visiting National Priorities at http://www.costofwar.com/. You can also find out what resources you could have had, such as money for teachers and nurses or new school buildings, if this money was not going to war.

At your IMAP screening plan a local action to get the word out about how much money your town or city is contributing to this war and how many soldiers have died. Set up on local street corners with a signs that show this information. Have sign up sheets for people who express interest in getting further involved in local efforts to stop the war. This could be a one-time, weekly, or monthly event.

You can also initiate local campaigns or join existing efforts to save schools, hospitals, libraries, parks, and other public facilities threatened with closure due to lack of federal, state, and local funding.

Sign the "Not One More" Letter to Congress
Join the AFSC in urging Congress to end the war: stop the funding, close all military bases in Iraq, and bring the troops home. Click here to sign on.

Sign the Voters for Peace Pledge

The Voters for Peace Pledge states "I will not vote for or support any candidate for Congress or President who does not make a speedy end to the war in Iraq, and preventing any future war of aggression, a public position in his or her campaign." Click here for a guide on how to use the peace pledge in your local organizing.

Support legislation for Veterans Benefits
Hold your representatives accountable for political rhetoric about supporting the troops. Lobby your representatives to Congress for legislation that supports Soldiers and Veterans Rights to medical and other benefits.

After screenings of these IMAP films you can ask your audience to write letters to their representatives supporting the legislative agenda of Veterans For America. The VFA agenda includes extending VA medical care from two to five years and equal education benefits. You can find a full listing of the VFA legislative agenda and check for their latest action alerts on the VFA website.